So I shouldn't complain about not getting letters because this week I got some. I'm just a cry baby, you all haven't forgotten about me after all. Well some of you have ha-ha but there are a handful of faithful people that are awesome.

Things in Chancay are going well. We are teaching a lot, but we are still having a hard time getting people to come to church. I think people are just use to changing their religious point of views to fit whatever life style they want to live, and they want to Praise the Lord and love Jesus but never go to church. They have created a religious reality where that's o.k. . . and it's hard to change that. But I know we can do it. We just have to help them have spiritual experiences so that they want to come to church because they want to have more of those experiences. Guess that means we just have to follow the formula in Alma 17:9 more praying more fasting so we have teaching with more spirit.

This week we had a super spiritual run in. We were walking around. All our appointments had fallen though, the contacts were going nowhere and we got to a fork in the road and we looked to the left and the right and we both felt like we should go right. As we walked we saw someone and before even talking to her I knew she was a member of the church. She came up to us and explained that she was from Lima but had a feeling that she needed to visit a friend here in Chancay. On her way she had this feeling that she should bring the missionaries to his house but didn't know how to contact them. When she got out of her taxi she saw us from a way off and was worried we would turn the other way, but then we turned right. We went with her to meet her friend. Her prayer was answered and hopefully his as well. Little miracles to be thankful for.
All is well. I really hope we have success this next month. Its Hermana Andersons last and she is SUCH a good worker. So diligent she really has her whole heart, mind and soul into this work. She deserves to see the fruit of her labor her in Chancay.

How is life! Things are going great here in Chancay. I love working with Hermana Anderson. We don't waste any time. We are just running around like crazy, learning the area and getting new people to teach. Chancay is different than Lima. It's a lot easier to get into houses. Now when we get in we have to make the decision if we really are going to come back or not, because some people are happy just to have someone come and talk to them about Jesus but they have no desires to change. But its good. We invite people to get baptized in the first lesson and you can see who has the desire to progress and who doesn't.

Last P Day was AWESOME! We went to some random mountain that is green! There were plants and trees and birds! I really felt like I was at home. We road in the back of a truck out to a mountain and then we went HIKING! I was in heaven!

Funny story for the week. Well there are these roosters that live behind our house, and they think that the sun rises at 3 in the morning. All week were dying. Seriously they didn't just squawk. It was the most intense screaming I have heard from an animal. So by the end of the week I told Hermana Anderson that I had to get ear plugs. The only problem is that neither of us knew how to say ear plugs. So we went to a pharmacy and explained what we wanted and the clerk says. "Si tampons!" Which if you can't tell means Tampons ha-ha. And I'm thinking what in the world. My Spanish must be terrible because I was talking about something to put in my ears ha-ha. Then she explained that in Spanish Ear plugs are called ear tampons. . . you better believe we got a good laugh out of that ha-ha.

Spiritual moment for the week. We went out teaching lessons with a recent convert. Recent converts are wonderful. Sometimes they will say some interesting things. In the church we speak another language. There are terms and phrases that we only use in our church. When people ask you how long ago you got baptized you would respond. "I have ____ years as a member." and when they ask how long you have been on our mission you say "I have ____ months in the mission." so we go out with this recent convert and someone asked her how long ago she got baptized and she responded "I have six months in the mission." At first I thought, oh she should have said as a member, then I thought about it. Really members are the example they really are what brings people to the gospel and keeps them there. They are the Lords hands here on earth. Everyone one of us is a missionary. So I guess Leanor was right, she does have six months in the mission.

So just to remind you all. I have four months left. That is sufficient time to write me a letter. I don't want you to all think, yeah she is coming home soon, I'll talk to her when she gets back. Four mouths! Don't forget about me!

How are you all doing! Have you all forgotten about me? I haven't heard from anyone in almost a month! Shame on you. I still have 4 months left ha-ha.

Things in Chancay are good. This is a fun area to serve in. the people are friendly and we get to teach a lot. In Chancay the members are SO good about coming and helping us and the people are friendly. I'm defiantly not in Lima anymore ha-ha. the only problem is getting all these nice people to come to church. its summer here and we live close to the beach. .. . everyone forgets about Jesus when the sun in hot and there is beach nearby. It's alright now, we have found families I'm excited. I want to bring a whole family to the gospel so badly!

You know I really like being a missionary. I hope I finish my mission like Hermana Anderson. She is such a hard worker. She made a goal to NEVER take a nap in her mission, and she never has. . . wish I could say I was that awesome, but I'm not ha-ha. She is a good example for me. I think before I thought I might just finish off trunky like all the elders in my last zone did, but she has shown me that you can finish working hard. So that's what I'm going to do.

I really am forgetting English, today I saw a Snickers bar and on the back of it, it had a word. I read it over and over again and then I had to ask Hermana Anderson, what word is this and I started reading it out loud pronouncing it in spanish, she looked at the bar and laughed at me, "Hermana Taggart, that's English, it says satisfies." .. . . ha-ha how embarrassing I can't even read English any more. I hope my mom is correcting these emails before they get on my blog. I wonder if my words are even coming out right.
Life is going good. just living it up, enjoying the mission. Working hard and trying to bring people to the gospel and keep them there.

This week was CRAZY!! Monday was Christmas Eve! We had an awesome P Day. Since we couldn't have a real snow ball fight we did one with balls of flour. It was awesome. The Elders loved it. I'm pretty sure it went down in history as one of the best P Days ever. In the night we did Noche de hogars with La Familia Espinoza y La Familia Delgado. We ate a ton. I ate some nasty turkey intestine that left me sick all week. But aside from that, Christmas eve was awesome. Afterwards we went over the Hermanas house and spent the night. In Peru sleeping on Christmas is impossible. At twelve everyone is shooting off illegal fireworks! It's awesome. I'll be honest it puts any fourth of July firework show to shame because its EVERYWHERE! We had a lot of fun. The Hermana in Tungasuca live on the 5th floor so the view was awesome!

Christmas I got to talk to my family! It was amazing! After talking to my family we waiting around for Hermana Venegas Mom to call. . .. and she never did. It was super Heart Breaking. She was too busy Christmas to talk to her own daughter. She called the next day while we were studying. Poor Hermana Venegas.

Then Wednesday in the night we got an unexpected phone call from the Mission office. Emergency Transfers. I got sent to Chancay with Hermana Anderson!

I had Thursday to say goodbye to everyone. Over all I was excited to leave. I was ready for new doors to knock and most of all to get out of LIMA! But it was hard to say goodbye to my converts. Mostly the Familia Espinoza. Anderson and his family. Wow . . . I didn't just cry I bawled like a Baby. It was embarrassing. I really love their family so much. I wish I could always be there to make sure they go to church and keep them on the right track. But you can't be a crutch. There comes a time where your converts have to do things for themselves. Obviously I will write them letters every now and then, I just hope and pray that they will keep doing things right. This family means the world to mean. I just want them to be happy and I know that living the gospel is the key to true happiness. I know they can do it. I know they can.

Friday afternoon we headed off to Chancay. It's a little town about 2 hours outside of Lima! ITS SO BEAUTIFUL! It's has trees and fields. It's close to the ocean. Literally the beach is in our area. (Which would be a lot cooler if we could swim ha-ha) but it's beautiful. The air smells like the ocean. The people are SUPER friendly ever women we talk to will say things like "mamita preciosa angelita." ha-ha its REALLY different from Lima. In Santa Isabel I couldn't sleep at night because of all the drunks with loud music outside of my window and here in Chancay I can't sleep because our neighbors rooster thinks that the sun starts rising at 3 in the morning ha-ha.

Seeing as me and Hermana Anderson are new to this area it's a little crazy. We get lost ALOT! We also share the area with the Elders. Which is interesting. I've never done that before. When we got here they handed us over a bunch of single moms that they are teaching and said if we have men that we don't think we should visit or it might be a problem we can hand them over to the Elders.

Hermana Anderson is my companion which is fun. We have been in the same zone for the last 6 months and she is one of my good friends. We get along great and seeing as we come from the same culture we don't have any of those fun culture shocks like you do at times with Latinas. I do worry a little bit about our Spanish. We basically always speak in Spanish but if she doesn't know how to say something and I don't know how to say some things we just get kind of stuck. I think we will be fine but our vocabulary won't grow like it does when you are with a Latina.

Chancay is a really wonderful ward. The members that are active are great! They give you references like there is no tomorrow. I have received more references in days here in Chancay then I did in all my months in Santa Isabel. The only problem we have is the number of inactive numbers. Chancay has on average 80 members in the Sacrament Meetings, but there are close to 500 members in total. . . . OUCH . . . . Hermana Anderson and I have decided that we are going to work with the Ward list and try to complete and reactive families because 80 out of 500 just isn't good. And out of that 80 there are like 15 maybe 20 priesthood holders. Lots of room to improve. It's odd for me because I have always served in Areas where there aren't baptism. That really isn't the problem here in Chancay. The problem is the 400 people who got baptized 5-20 years ago who aren't coming to church.

Today is New Years Eve. We are planning on going somewhere fun and doing a BBQ. I'm pretty excited! We are the only Hermanas in our zone. . . which is kind of boring. But its o.k. Wow! I feel like this is the longest email I have written in a long time, but seriously this week has been CRAZY!!

I don't have much to say about investigators yet. Basically the Elders handed over some single women and two families that have been teaching for months and months but aren't progressing but they feel like they can. I'm excited to get to work! I just need to learn the streets. This area is much bigger then Antares, San Felipe or Santa Isabel. It's going to take some time to get use to.

Can you believe it, second Christmas in Peru, but really it's more like the first because the last one I was in the CCM.

Christmas in Peru is different. There is no snow. Lots of really cheesy Christmas decorations. There isn't really Christmas music. I mean there are those kids songs translated into Spanish, but CHIRSTMAS music doesn't exist. That really is a shame. Traditions in Peru for Christmas. Well the kids stay up all night. You know in the states how we tell kids to go to bed or Santa won't come. Yeah that doesn't go here. Everyone is up ALL night with fireworks, salsa music. They open their gifts at midnight. Also the people here don't put the baby Jesus into their nativity sets until midnight on Christmas because they say that the Baby Jesus hasn't been born yet. They also stuff you full of PANATON!! Its fruit cake! I can handle a slice every now and then, be we are talking about days and days of Panaton! YUCK! Oh and despite the fact that its hot here they drink hot chocolate. Anyhow that's some Christmas fun facts for you. I haven't actually lived Christmas yet, but that's what they tell me is going to happen.

This week . . . my companion got bit by a dog, and she got bit good. She had to get stitches, and since she got bit in the leg the doctor told her she couldn't walk till she got her stitches out. So guess who was stuck in the house all week again! Ugh. Perhaps I didn't learn what I was supposed to learn the last time my companion was sick. Poor girl. I know she wants to work. I think the Lord is teaching us both something.

But thankfully Hermana Venegas has so much faith that if she can't go find the baptisms they come and find her. Friday a less active member came to the talent show we did. She has two children that aren't baptized and she really didn't want them to. But then on Friday they stole from a bunch of the members. The mom talked to the bishop, she is in over her head. He suggested she let us come visit and see if we could help. He sons are really sweet, but they are naughty. It's not their fault nor their moms. She is a single mom, her husband abandoned them a few years back, she doesn't have any family in Lima. So she has to work all day. Which leaves her three sons who are 11, 9 and 7 home alone all day. She sends them to school at eight and then she comes home at 1 in the morning. Basically her kids are just left to run around the streets of Peru. After the hole stealing incident she talked to her boss to change her hours. She now is working from 4 in the afternoon till 1 in the morning. Not ideal but it gives her more time with her sons. The pay cut though is going to be really tough for her.

It was cute though. We taught her sons about baptisms about keeping the commandments and her nine year old son said he wanted to get baptized. So I asked him why, and he said. "When you do bad stuff, you become a slave to the Devil and he will say stuff like you should rob that person and then you do it and you are sad. But if I get baptized I get to have a friend, the Holy Ghost and he is going to say, No don't rob that person, and then I won't rob them and I will be happy." ha-ha it was adorable to see how he understood the lesson. Her Eleven year old son was baptized when he was a baby so his little seven year old brother asked why he needed to be baptized again and before we could even answer Benny the eleven year old says "I don't even remember making any promises the first time, so I've got to do it for reals this time so I remember my promises I´ve made." It's even sweeter when you can hear their little voices talking in Spanish. I love teaching them. It's an adventure teaching them in a way so that they will pay attention. Lots of pictures. Short lessons and a game at the end that has something to-do with the lesson. It really tests my companions patience teaching them. Maybe its because I'm hyper active with a short attention span, but I love it.

Basically all is well here in Peru. I'm defiantly missing you all this Christmas season. But not too much, really seeing as there is no snow and no family it's not Christmas. I'm excited to get to talk to my family tomorrow!!!!

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Missionary Scripture

John 21:17"He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep."